This was everything a finale should be, and then some 🥹 It was an intense ride! My poor little heart broke over every loss, but they were necessary to the journey. These characters became friends through this 3 book adventure, and they'll live rent-free in my head forever.

Do you know that feeling when you pick up the second or third book in a series? When you don't know if it will live up to your expectations, but you loooove the first book and want to give this one a chance? That was my experience reading this book, and I'm so glad I stayed with this series.

The first book in this series is EVERYTHING to me. It's one of my top five favorite fantasy romances of all time. While I'm not quite as obsessed with the second and third books, they're still 4 or 4.5 star reads. I think Abigail Owens is a new auto-buy author for me.

This series has everything I look for: enemies-to-lovers, witty banter, slow-burn romance, and found family. And they're done so well! I love how the author draws inspiration from these tropes without making them cliches. Even this book's twist with the romance wins my approval. I don't know what sorcery Abigail Owens used to make me like the amnesia trope, but it worked!

And can we take a moment to talk about the characters? I love how clever and resourceful Meren is. Whether it's raising armies to reclaim her city or facing down a king made of shadows, Meren rises to the task. There aren't any damsels-in-distress in this book! I also like how Meren's sharper edges are softened by the compassion she feels for her people. Many authors fail to find this balance (an example being Captain Marvel—yikes). That DOESN'T happen in this book. Meren is smart, feisty, and capable WITHOUT sacrificing her inner kindness. I wish more FMCs were like her.

And then there's Reven. I LOVE this man. If anything happens to Meren (goddess forbid), I will happily take Reven for myself. There's something about his unwavering support of Meren that makes him sooo hot. And did I mention he has dark hair, shadow magic, and a personality more prickly than a cactus? If you're searching for a new book boyfriend to get over your crush on Rhysand, look no further. (Also, good luck. You're going to need it if you want to get past Meren).

I could spend another hour gushing about my love for the setting, side characters, and plot twists (bring tissues), but I think I've made it clear that I love this series. Reading "The Shadows Rule All" feels like sipping hot chocolate and snuggling into a cozy blanket on a winter day. I'm so happy with this final installment in one of my favorite series. I hope other readers enjoy Meren's story as much as I did!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and Netgalley; all opinions are my own.

Thank you to Entangled for an ARC!

This is the final book in the series, and the stakes are as high as ever. This book picks up almost right where we last were left.

Abigail always finds ways to keep us on our toes -- the angst between Meren and Reven is intense in this book.

Politics, actions, this book has it all. And pain, a dose of pain too.

Overall, I really loved the ending to this series, I felt that it was a great conclusion and overall did the series justice. It's hard to talk about this third book without spoilers, so you'll just have to read it yourself~

This has been a really brilliant series and the finale did not disappoint! The world building and the character relationships were up to the usual standard (although there was a bit of the plot which felt a bit repetitive - my only gripe). An excellent book, definitely pick it up!

Thank you to the publisher for sending a copy to review

The Shadows Rule All by Abigail Owen is an electrifying conclusion to the Dominions series, centering on Meren and Reven’s gripping journey. As shadows of danger close in, Meren and Reven find themselves fighting not only for survival but for the future of their world. The chemistry between these two characters crackles with tension and intensity, and their dynamic brings both heart and high stakes to this finale.

Abigail Owen crafts a stunning world filled with intrigue, danger, and unexpected alliances. With each twist, you’re drawn deeper into the Dominions’ dark magic and battles for power. Fans of epic fantasy and spellbinding romances will find this book an unforgettable read. This is the kind of ending that stays with you long after you’ve turned the last page!

Thank you NetGalley and Entangled Teen for this ARC to read and review.

Rated 4.5 Stars

The Shadows Rule All was epic. It was packed with action, adventure, treachery, betrayal, love and so much more. I thoroughly enjoyed it even though I'm left with a bittersweet feeling that this series is over. I loved it even when it ripped my heart out and stomped on it. This book was wild. Everything in it was ramped up, the angst, the tension, the stakes, the emotion. It was definitely an emotional roller-coaster read. I'm left feeling all out of sorts. It will probably take me days to process all that I'm feeling right now. It was good and I highly recommend.

The Shadows Rule All is the third and final book in the Dominions series. Owen nailed this finale and gave the story the ending it deserved. There was so much packed into this story with all of the plot lines that needed to be tied up. Owen also amped up the intensity in this installment. The characters were placed in precarious positions fairly frequently and as with war, not everyone makes it out. My heart hurt for Meren with everything she endured throughout this story but especially for some of the moments between her and Reven while the worked to find their happily ever after. I loved that we got to spend more time with the family that Meren created and surrounded herself with. My one complaint was that the story did start to feel too long during the middle. However, the ending was so well done while being equal parts heartbreaking and full of hope. I combo read this between the ebook and audiobook. I love the narration by Samara Naeymi and Luis Moreno. I’ve read the other books in the series via audiobook and this continues to live up to expectations for narration. There’s so much emotion and expression that it’s easy to keep readers engaged in the story. You can’t go wrong with either eyeball or audiobook reading. This whole series is well worth the read.

4 ⭐️

It feels like I've been waiting for the final book in this series for a long time, and it did not disappoint. I had forgotten about abigail owens' willingness to destroy her readers with deaths and betrayals, and destroy me she did.

The plot moves along nicely. We have moments of planning and then fight scenes. I was concerned when I reached the last 70 pages, and there was so much left to happen, but it felt well paced and somewhat like the final episode of a tv show featuring the epic faceoff.

One of my favourite things in this series is the magic system. So many powers and most of them can be used in more than one way. We spent 2 books seeing reven fighting the shadows, and it was very interesting to read meren having that same internal struggle.

The romance is on point. The longing is constant even when they are together, and they bounce off each other well. Tabra and achyls may have taken the romance crown in this one, though. The found family is on a whole other level in this one. Pella and Hakan remain some of my favourite characters.

I've gone with 4 stars mostly because there's only so many times the same thing can happen before it starts to feel like our characters should expect it. There's a lot of possessions happening, and reven refusing to be close to meren and then kissing her anyway.

Overall, i enjoyed it, and I'm a little sad that it's over. I received an advance review copy of this book, and this review represents my honest opinion. Thank you to netgalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

Satisfying conclusion to a three novel series. I was so so sad with the fate of one of the characters though. Anything more will spoil the story, but be prepared with tissues.

The Shadows Rule All by Abigail Owen continues the story following the events of The Stolen Throne with some time having elapsed since then. I hesitate to reveal my thoughts on the ending to avoid spoilers, but the journey leading up to it is filled with action, particularly in the latter half of the book. Personally, I found Eidolon to be somewhat disappointing, and I still feel a sense of unresolved closure on certain aspects. It is bittersweet to see the conclusion of this captivating tale, but The Shadows Rule All serves as a fitting end to a truly remarkable story.

and the trilogy concludes!! i think i liked this one the most- while the first two felt very typical to most fantasies out rn, this book did a good job on focusing on the action filled plot and further developing the characters. one could maybeee say it was rushed, but if you’ve been a fan of the whole series, i think you’d find this a satisfying conclusion.

This is the final book in this trilogy and it was just as magnetic and epic as the other two books in the series. We all know that our first love is always one of the purest and beautiful loved we experience, with all the feels and emotions, and these two were no different. It was a beautiful journey for our bondmates, and I loved that I got to be a part of it. So many emotions and so many feels, I loved, I laughed, I cried, these two just grabbed my heart from book one, and took us all on an epic journey. Because in this world even with a bonded mate it’s never that easy, nothing great in life ever is. We watched them fall in love, become bonded mates and all the heart warming beautiful moments of young love, throw in trying to save their world and overcome the odds and all the obstacles working against them, and it really was an epic journey. And wow were there a lot of obstacles for these two and their band of loyal friends.

Epic ending to an epic series. Thank you Abigail Owen for taking us on this journey, it was emotional, fantastic and heartwarming to read the finale. So sad to see it end, they will all be missed. Gone, but never forgotten.

A completely satisfying conclusion to this trilogy. One of the better conclusions I have read in a while.

This world from Owen has always been a unique one; from the world itself to the powers to the reasoning behind all of the actions, Owen struck a great balance. In the end do I feel like the catalyst for all of the action is super strong? not really, but the rest of the plot and the characters make up for that.

What i truly enjoyed about this conclusion, and indeed all three books, was the fact that Meren was not infallible; in fact she was often weak or the cause of the problems in ways that I don't think other authors allow their characters to be. In this conclusion, I could feel that the stakes were real, and in fact Owen took out some characters that other authors might have deemed untouchable. By the third installment of a book, members of our merry bands are usually safe, or the author pulls some last second magic to make everything better again. Not so with Owen, and the story, and its characters, are stronger for that.

💜ARC Review💜
📖 The Shadows Rule All
🖋️ Abigail Owen
🗓️ Releases November 12th
🧬 Upper YA FANTASY
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶️🌶️/5
A beautiful completed ending to The Dominion series. The story picks right back up where we left off in The Stolen Throne, throwing us right back into the ride, and I was here for it. The things we see Maren and Reven fight through in this book are heart wrenching. The loss we see each of them coping with is immense, but it all leads up to an epic battle of light vs. dark.

🚨Thank you @netgalley & @entangledpublishing / @entangledteen for my EARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

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The way Abigail Owen tied this series together was phenomenal. I felt every emotion possible reading through Meren and Reven’s story and all their friends struggles to defeat the king. I felt like I was whisked away, once again, by the story that had so much adventure, heartbreak, and love. A masterpiece honestly.

I didn't read the first book in this series. I'm not sure how much it would help but suspect I would get a lot out of it. I did read book two and now this one and enjoyed both considerably. Owen is incredibly imaginative. She creates a hugely diverse world (worlds?) full of colorful characters. The story in The Shadow Rules All is intense. There is so much going on. Almost too much at times. It was all highly entertaining.

Reven can catch a break. After successfully breaking away from Eilodon he's fighting for his very existence again while trying to help Mereneith. Meren is still fighting long and hard to save her land, her sister and their people, from Eilodon. Tabra is coming out of her shell, learning more about the evil in their world and growing as a woman and a queen. The rest of the characters from the previous books are still fighting hard with Meren, Tabra and Reven.

There is so much going on in this book. So much action, all tense and stressful. So much evil. So little big picture knowledge. Meren deals with threat after threat to the best of her abilities but she really doesn't know what all is happening, who to trust, who to destroy, She's often fighting nearly blind knowledge-wise. So many around her have motives that are possibly not what they appear. She must worry about who to trust. Even Reven and her inner circle are questionable at times, including some shocking betrayals.

It's hard to believe that even a fictional, paranormal character can go through all that Meren does. She doesn't know the word "quit" and never seriously considers any course but the one she's on. She must fight the shadows inside of her who are still loyal to Eilodon. She must test and learn her new powers. She must save her people, the world, the worlds by having to fight for life on a daily basis.

This story is well structured and interesting. There is so much action. The characters are very diverse and always complex. It is a very good read.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Wow! What an epic ending to the series! It took me a minute to get into the story, but once I did, I couldn’t put the book down! It’s action-packed and so intense, and quite a bit darker than the first two books.  The romance had a ton of angst, and all of the relationships were so well-developed.  I like that the story explores romantic relationships and friendships alike and how dynamically developed the characters are, especially Meren.

Meren really stands out in this story, as she battles outside forces and ones from within. Now the carrier of the shadows, Meren’s struggle is constant, and that as well as her journey with a small group of her allies, stressed me out! Lol  There’s so much suspense and danger, and I feared for some of my faves.  It was gripping and emotional, and a pretty satisfying and epic ending to the series. 

Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

I'm torn between been happy that this was so good and sad that it's over. It's been about eighteen months since the second book, I've been impatiently waiting for the third and final installment and finally it's here. This isn't a standalone book, you do need to have read the first two, and now that you can read one after the other, then why wouldn't you.
I loved the story of Meren and Reven and after the way things were left at the end of The Stolen Throne, I wasn't sure how everything could work itself out. I have to be honest here, there's a lot here that had me on the edge of my seat and hoping that it wouldn't happen that way. But that doesn't mean that it wasn't an ultimately satisfying read. There's heartbreak here, plenty of it, but that's what makes the story really.
This is a fantastic and gripping read. I think that Abigail Owen is really surpassing herself here. I wish I'd got a bit more time on my hands because I'd go back and read the whole trilogy one after the other. That's something I can do in the future though and gives me something to look forward to.
I can't wait to see what Abigail Owen comes up with next. In the meantime, I'm going to have a lie-down to recover from The Shadows Rule All.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own and given voluntarily

I received a free ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and the series overall. That being said, sadly this book was my least favorite of the trilogy. Without too many spoilers there is a trope in here that I could have done without. But the character growth for so many of these characters was amazing. However, omg so many heart strings pulled throughout. I will for sure read this author again and as soon as this book is officially out I will be buying it or getting it as a gift to put on my shelf as the covers are sooooo gorgeous.

Dammit Abigail! You left me hanging since May 2023, when I finished The Stolen Throne And although I knew this would be the ending of the story, you still made me nearly lose all hope. Meren and Tabra still have a long way to go, before the epic finale of the story. Abigail really knows how to twist your nerves into a giant pretzel. One revelation after the other, where hope is created and crushed within the turning of the pages. Needless to say, you need tissues and a soundproof room to muffle your screams of frustration. So yep, a total rollercoaster of emotions. On one side, I'm happy the journey is over, but on the other side I'm yearning for yet another adventure from Abigail. Five out of five stars from me (if possible, I would have made it six out of five stars) and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.